Does anyone know who's making these & where? They're offering longwing brogues in unusual Horween cordovan colors at prices that are slightly lower than Alden's. That's got me curious.
Thanks,
Nick D.
Thanks,
Nick D.
Florsheim by Duckie Brown?
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ncdobson
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I hope by extension you've grown out the requisite fashionable stubble.
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I look like a Canadian lumberjack in a $5,500 Italian suit - 3 sizes too small of course.
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Owned the DB LWs in cigar shell. I also ordered off of gilt in the heat of the moment.
Loved the shoes. Just like the old kenwoods but the sole didn't have quite As much heft. Construction seemed solid enough.
I did send them back though. I thought $400 for a shoe made in India was just too much. They seemed like they would have worked but I didn't want to risk it.
If I ever see these sub $300 I'll buy every color.
Loved the shoes. Just like the old kenwoods but the sole didn't have quite As much heft. Construction seemed solid enough.
I did send them back though. I thought $400 for a shoe made in India was just too much. They seemed like they would have worked but I didn't want to risk it.
If I ever see these sub $300 I'll buy every color.
I think this comment is the 500 pound (and 600 dollar) gorilla in the conversation. The reason you are probably looking at Florsheim by Duckie Brown is the same reason I am in conversation with some fellow in England about making me a pair of Tricker's Richard brogues. The Alden longwing is just off.
Off. There, I said it.
The Barrie last is . . . this seems a heresy . . . is not a great last. It has a cult following, but I don't understand it, and I am not sure whom it is designed to fit. Ordering half a size down is great and all, but they don't make half a size down from my size. I have a pair in the Barrie last, but I just don't think I will sink any more money into shoes built on it.
Also, Alden does not have metal grommets in the eyelets. I understand eschewing the larger, round types used by Tricker's, say, but they don't even use the recessed/hidden variety used by AE and Church's. I feel like I know how my $600 Alden bluchers will perish, whenever they perish: I am going to tear the cordovan at the eyelet because there is no grommet. Why?
Difficult to get the cigar colored variant--another problem. J. Crew sells a waxy brown calf Alden longwing, but need be it is made on the Barrie last and it is waxy.
You probably have your own reasons for looking beyond the Alden longwing; these are mine.
I don't think the Florsheim by Duckie Brown is the answer or, at least, one is left with too many questions about it to justify the expense.
I wish someone on this board would buy a pair of Robinson longwings. They look really interesting and priced well for what they seem to offer. I just don't know enough about the size, the leather, and the craftsmanship.
So I totally sympathize with your interest in the Duckie Brown, and if you pull the trigger on them I hope they do what you want.
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I may be Canadian, but I ain't no lumberjack!
Really though, we'd better stop joking while we're ahead. Some lurking fashionista is getting "good" ideas from our back and forth. :icon_smile_big:
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I agree with you wholeheartedly. The Barrie last is not designed for the average, or near average, shaped foot. As I obtain more and more pairs of shoes that actually fit, I realize how horribly my Barrie lasted shoes fit. I will never even consider another one in the future.
AS produces a longwing as a stock item. Also, their MTO operation is very flexible - another thing that Alden doesn't do very well.
I think you might have just convinced me to sell mine. I am tired of "working" with a $600 shoe.
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Good for you! I wish more people would start speaking out about this issue. Alden sells some really great looking shoes on a really odd fitting last, and I think a lot of people just put up with it because they want those iconic styles.
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^^
Not to be argumentative, but the Barrie last provides for me a very comfortable fit. I do have to downsize by 1/2 a size from what I normally wear and my foot shape does feature a broad forefoot, with a somewhat more narrow than average heel. Consequently, I have PTB's, long wings, cap toe dress boots All Weather Walkers and Ranger Mocs, all crafted by Alden on the Barrie last and each fits me to a "T", as they say! Problems arise when, as was alluded in an earlier post, folks become enamored with a particular shoe design, but give inadequate consideration to the last on which such designs were crafted. The problem is not with Alden or the Barrie last. It is reflective of bad, individual purchasing decisions. Paraphrasing the late Johnnie Cochran, "if the shoe don't fit, we must aquit"...ourselves with another pair, built on another last!
Not to be argumentative, but the Barrie last provides for me a very comfortable fit. I do have to downsize by 1/2 a size from what I normally wear and my foot shape does feature a broad forefoot, with a somewhat more narrow than average heel. Consequently, I have PTB's, long wings, cap toe dress boots All Weather Walkers and Ranger Mocs, all crafted by Alden on the Barrie last and each fits me to a "T", as they say! Problems arise when, as was alluded in an earlier post, folks become enamored with a particular shoe design, but give inadequate consideration to the last on which such designs were crafted. The problem is not with Alden or the Barrie last. It is reflective of bad, individual purchasing decisions. Paraphrasing the late Johnnie Cochran, "if the shoe don't fit, we must aquit"...ourselves with another pair, built on another last!
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I don't doubt it fits some people well. I tried nearly every sizing combination possible (including .5 down) to find something that doesn't leave my narrow heels a bloody mess after a day. Nothing works. Too much money spent. I had all my fittings done at Alden in SF. I wish I would have tried something else much much sooner. I have scars that will remind me how not to shop for shoes for years to come. The C&J 325 last is like a dream in comparison.
I do think it's a knock on Alden, or at least the retailers, that it's nearly impossible to purchase a longwing that isn't on the Barrie last.
Yes, we choose to buy or not to buy, and that decision is ours entirely. That said, if one is a true 13 US, then one has a problem. Unless I am incorrect, Alden does not make a size 12.5 on the Barrie last as a standard offering, and thus one cannot really try it on without special ordering it. A bad purchasing decision, indeed. I bought mine in 13 because the 12 is too small, and I did so because I think even the critics would agree that Alden's shell colors and finish are unsurpassed. With a heavy sock the shoe fits well enough, and it is a beautiful shoe, but I wish it were easier to experiment with options, and therein lies my chief complaint. I say "easier" as a fairly seasoned shoe lover. I am willing to travel and wait and experiment to find the variant of a particular shoe that works for me--with Alden no less. It just seems to me that if they know the last generally runs half a size big, then it would be nice to try on a 12.5 without buying it first.
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I guess comfort is very important. This reminds me of J&M (sorry If Im diverting from FLroshiem here).
I am still undecided if I should get a pair of J&M. I love the trampoline cushioning (especially for a flat footer) but I kind of hold back when I discovered they were made in India. Not that the rpoduct is inferior but I am always under the impression that J&M is made in the USA. I was told that the Aristocrat range is still made in USS. Can anyone confirm this?
I am still undecided if I should get a pair of J&M. I love the trampoline cushioning (especially for a flat footer) but I kind of hold back when I discovered they were made in India. Not that the rpoduct is inferior but I am always under the impression that J&M is made in the USA. I was told that the Aristocrat range is still made in USS. Can anyone confirm this?
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I must correct you here: You could get a real shoe for $100 less than what they're asking, made in a country with fair labour laws!
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This Shoe Radiates Bad Vibrations
I wouldn't spend this kind of money on a shoe that, material not withstanding, will never be anything but a throwaway made under questionable conditions. Spend your money somewhere else.
Besides, it is bad karma to combine high quality material with shoddy craft.
I thought I said that.I must correct you here: You could get a real shoe for $100 less than what they're asking, made in a country with fair labour laws!
I wouldn't spend this kind of money on a shoe that, material not withstanding, will never be anything but a throwaway made under questionable conditions. Spend your money somewhere else.
Besides, it is bad karma to combine high quality material with shoddy craft.
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I wore some pretty J&M Signature saddle shoes today that I bought on clearance a couple of years ago. They're the only uncomfortable J&Ms I own & the only ones with the trampoline system. They were made in Italy.
Nick D.
Most of the Florsheim at the Rack - like most of the other merchandise - have never seen the inside of a Nordstrom store. They are bought by the truckload at a ridiculous discount and sold to Rack customers who think - incorrectly - that just because the store name includes Nordstrom the merchandise must be the same as a real Nordstrom.
One of the most grotesque scenes in the sartorial world is women and men grovelling and rooting through displays of garbage befitting a Shopko with a smile of frugal, fashionable self satisfaction on their face. They are be taken and not only do they not know it - they LOVE it.
One of the most grotesque scenes in the sartorial world is women and men grovelling and rooting through displays of garbage befitting a Shopko with a smile of frugal, fashionable self satisfaction on their face. They are be taken and not only do they not know it - they LOVE it.
Most of the Florsheims at the rack - like most of the merchandise the Rack - have never seen the inside of a Nordstrom store. They are bought by the truckload at a ridiculous discount and sold to Rack customers who think - incorrectly - that just because the store name includes Nordstrom the merchandise must be the same as a real Nordstrom.
One of the most grotesque scenes in the sartorial world is women and men grovelling and rooting through displays of garbage befitting a Shopko with a smile of frugal, fashionable self satisfaction on their face. They are be taken and not only do they not know it - they LOVE it.
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The Crown Aristocrafts are made in Tennessee. The regular Aristocrafts ( the $265 shoes) are made in India.
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I was referring specifically to the Duckie Brown models, which I'm pretty sure had seen the inside of a Nordstrom store - but were still not worth getting.
While I agree that most of NR's stock isn't ex- the "real" store, my local one has occasional Santoni, Magnanni, etc. and plenty of AE - enough for it to be worthwhile popping in occasionally to see what they have.
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